As a staffer in the U.S. Senate years ago, I had a small but humbling privilege – a “floor pass” that entitled me to sit behind a railing reserved for senior staff on the floor of the Senate. It was a privilege we staffers were careful not to overuse, much less abuse.
I remember sitting quietly behind that railing, looking around in marvel at that room, barely the size of a basketball court. That little room, made greater than life by the modesty of its precious procedures, sanctified by the generations who fought and died to defend it, seemed to me the fragile beating heart of the greatest Republic in human history. The senators milling about, chatting and voting, were ordinary men and women, full of faults and foibles. But their offices – representing countless millions – made them like living statues to be revered, Democrat and Republican alike. I remember feeling grateful that I was even allowed to sit among them with my mouth shut for a brief time. Countless generations of Americans have hallowed those halls and chambers.
That hallowed ground was violated today by an unspeakable sacrilege that will redound to President Trump’s shame for all time. I was honored to serve in the Trump administration. I served loyally and I have defended it since when I thought it was being unfairly attacked, which was a lot. But we must in no way excuse Trump’s complicity in the events of today, his failure to put the good of the Republic above his own short-term interests, or his failure to call off the mob he assembled and roused to a fury.